By Sheer Chance: A What If?
by shadewatcher
Summary: It is said that there are alternate worlds, the Swat Kats have already been to at least one. What happens when someone from one of those other worlds ends up in their world. How will it effect them? Is it just a fluke or just the beginning?
1. Chapter 1

A SHEER CHANCE

BY Shadewatcher

Chapter 1: Bad Day's End

In an alternate dimension...

Crystal woke groaning. Everything hurt, even things she wasn't aware of having hurt. Sighing she thought back on how she had ended up in this precarious position. That hurt too.

The day had started like any other. She and Jade had been testing out some of their new equipment designs when the call came in that Dark Sage was yet again trying to kidnap the deputy mayor. It was bad enough that that nasty she kat was constantly destroying things and stealing, but the fact that she fixated on poor Cal was just too much.

Calvin Briggs had been their friend since long before they took up the family mantle as SWAT Kats, and as he was one of their few confidants, they were very protective of him. As fourth generation SWATs, as they referred to themselves, they had a duty to uphold this city's peace and hopefully proper existence. It was made easier due to the fact that their mothers had long ago signed a truce agreement with the enforcers and now both sides benefited from it.

Crystal couldn't forget how happy it had made her and Jade feel, when the new Chief Enforcer Usira Ferlin had welcomed them to their new roles as Defenders of Megakat City. Since their mothers had announced their retirement the city had no choice but to accept the newbies as their new defenders. That was six years ago.

A strong bond of loyalty and friendship had cemented the SWATs with the enforcers, which made working together much easier. Now, though, all it did was add crushing pressure to Crystal's already broken heart.

They had thought that the simple call from Cal would end as it always did, with Dark Sage cursing them furiously while high tailing through one of her blasted dimensional portals. Well it seemed to end with just that, until they returned to the enforcer flight line to give the commander the stolen goods back. That's when all hell broke loose.

Apparently the wicked she kat had only side stepped to limbo and waited until they were all together, that's when she struck the fatal blow. They never knew what had hit them, or most of them didn't. It turned out, they were the fortunate ones. Crystal however was not one of them.

As she hung suspended from the wall mounted cuffs, she could still feel every blow the hated she kat had bestowed upon her body over the past few hours. As if being blown off the enforcer flight line and watching nearly everyone you knew and cared for die around her wasn't bad enough, Dark Sage had taken her fury out on Crystal, beating her to within an inch of her life.

The she-kat knew full well Crystal's own magic would heal her wounds, though slowly, as she was seriously drained. Their world was a mesh of magic and technology, both being utilized to it's utmost to benefit the populace. Now that very magic that kept her alive also left her to be tortured by their most hated enemy.

She sighed, if she had died at least she would be with Jess and her parents right now instead of this hell. Born Selina Corbell she was the youngest of her clan to take up the mantle of a SWAT Kat. With her dearest friend Jessie Turn, they had whipped tail with the best of them.

The legacy started four generations ago with her and Jess' great grandmothers, Jessica Clawson and Cassandra Furlong, the two having been kick out of the enforcers for something a superior had done, but was too arrogant to admit to and so had laid the blame on the two rookies. Vowing to show the city what they were made of, they took the punishment given to them and turned it into something the city would never forget.

As she thought back on all that had happened in the last five hours she couldn't stop the tears from rolling down her cheeks. It hurt...it hurt more than any of the other wounds she had ever sustained over the years, even the death of her parents hadn't been this bad. Jess was all she had left in the way of family. They had known each other since kitten hood, and were sisters in every way but blood. They had no one else, no other family left.

Well except for Cal anyway. But that wasn't the same; he had prior commitments to the city. Now with Jess gone there would be no next generation of SWATs to come.

Closing her eyes she let the horror of what had truly happened sink in once more. A sudden sound however brought her from her pain as the object of her rage entered the room.

"Ahh, I see that you have regained consciousness once more," The dark she kat taunted. "Wouldn't want you to miss any of the fun," She chuckled darkly. Dark Sage was just that, a tall, lean, well built black furred she kat with hair to match. The magical ornaments she kept braided in her long locks were a testament of her abilities. She was every bit as imposing as her reputation defined, dark and dangerous.

Sneering she made her way across the room to where Crystal hung suspended. With one claw, she shredded the mask that had been the symbol of Crystal's family for four generations. Crystal didn't flinch. This slightly put off the larger kat as she had expected at least a protest from the creamy blond tabby. All she got was a dark stare with nothing but hate and loathing. Growling DS shoved Crystal's head up to look her in the eye. "Nothing to say for yourself SWAT Kat, not even a defense of your precious identity." She demanded coldly.

The answer she received was not what she had thought it would be as Crystal stared her in the eye and then spat in her face shrieking. "What do you think you mindless hag, you have taken everything from me...everything! Do you really think my identity means anything now!" puffing up she continued her diatribe "Do you really think that there is anything that you could do to hurt me anymore than you have? I have nothing left, nothing!! Do your worst it doesn't matter anymore!" Her screams falling into sobs, leaving the evil kat to ponder what to do next.

DS snorted, "You lie, you shameless hussy, I know all too well how you feel towards my Calvin. He is mine and no matter your performance, I will never believe that you don't care."

Crystal could only gape at the ignorance of the large she kat, her mind in chaos, 'Is this what all of this was about? She blew up the entire flight line, killed dozens of kats, to get rid of what she thought were her love rivals?' She thought in shock. She could only stare in disbelief at the lunatic she kat.

"I know it's true," The deranged kat spouted. "I've seen it for myself, you are always hanging on him, both of you were. Don't deny it"

It started in her chest and moved till it overtook her whole being, there was no way to stop it, so she let it out. Bursting into uproarious laughter may not have been the best idea, but she just couldn't help herself. The notions DS was spouting were so insane.

Gasping she managed to speak, though it looked as if she were going to get another beating for her sudden outburst. She may as well call it as she saw it. "You are an idiot Dark Sage! You killed all those innocent kats over this madness. Cal doesn't even like you, much less want you as his mate. Besides," she snickered "you're the wrong 'type' for his liking." With that she burst into laughter again at the look on the dark she kat's face.

"What the hell does that mean, you freakish little whore." DS spat grabbing Crystal by the throat.

Crystal only smirked "Look in your gazing pool, moron and see for yourself." With Crystal still chuckling Dark Sage did as the blond kat said and moved to view her gazing pool. Staring into it's depths she mentally asked the question, and scowled as the pool swirled to give her an answer. In moments though her scowl turned to shock, then to rage at the sights the depths revealed to her. Upending her own magical pool, she screamed with fury. "How dare you," she raved, "you knew and were mocking me all along!"

Crystal just smirked, she knew all too well that her dear friend Cal had a hankering for toms, not queens, but that was his personal life not hers. She still had to grin at the fury seeping out of the big she kat as she ranted over her futile attempts to have him. His resemblance, a constant reminder of his dark age sire, King Condrel, her lost unrequited love, had her desperate to have him. Now that hope was gone as well. Crystal chuckled to herself in spite of the fact that she would be the one to bear the brunt of Dark Sage's new rage.

Somewhere within Dark Sage's Castle...

Cal had not been idle when he learned what had happened at Enforcer Headquarters. He had personally arrived on scene to help identify the victims. To his horror, he had found Jade, the commander, as well as several others, he had known and counted as friends, among the casualties.

Those that the initial explosion didn't kill, the thirty story drop to the pavement did. Those on the ground suffered as well, it was chaos in the surrounding streets. With so many wounded, dead or dying, no one noticed when he made sure that Jade's body was secreted away to the coroner's office to ensure she received a proper burial.

His sad task done, he moved on to more important matters, finding Crystal. He had learned she had been taken prisoner by Dark Sage and was, most likely, being tortured at this very moment.

To aid in his attempt to rescue her, he went to Crystal's place to collect her familiar, a small dragon mix named Ryu. With this creature, he planned to lead the assault on Dark Sage's castle. She had always been there to rescue him, now it was his turn to return the favor.

They had managed to slip into the castle easily to their surprise. Dark Sage was apparently too arrogant to protect her security. As they cautiously ascended the stairwell, the sounds of ranting could be heard well down to the basement.

Cal chuckled darkly to himself, 'Only Sely could piss someone off that bad.' Sighing he added mentally, 'Thank gods she's still alive.' Now all they had to do was rescue her. 'Yeah, right, how hard could that be,' He thought fantastically. 'This is only the most psychotic she kat ever to live. Oh yeah, piece of cake.' He groaned inwardly at that thought, but then again, Jade and Crystal had taken her on time and time again, just to save his sorry tail. It wasn't like he could back out now.

His own mystical abilities were rivaled by none, yet he remained a pacifist and refused to fight, till now anyway. Now there was no other alternative, those meant to fight no longer could, now it was all up to him and a few enforcers who had been lucky enough not to have been caught in the earlier melee.

As they got closer to the tower room, the sounds of rage were suddenly accompanied by screams of pain. Cal's blood froze, 'No,' was his only thought, this would not continue. With the enforcers close on his tail, he launched up the stairs and through the old doors at the top.

There was Crystal, covered in her own blood with Dark Sage flailing a whip at any part of her body that she could strike. New streamers of blood oozed down her front and sides. It only took Cal a heartbeat to react, Dark Sage had not yet noticed them and this was her biggest mistake.

Cal let his magic explode outward in a force wave that hit the large she kat with the power of his rage behind it. Caught off guard, the evil sorceress was knocked backward onto her helpless hostage.

Gasping she spun around and gaped at the object of her fury staring coldly at her. She roared and lunged toward him only to be knocked back again. She hadn't been aware that Cal was this powerful and it shocked her that he'd chosen to keep his power reined in all this time.

"So you've come to save your little friend, hmm?" She hissed then gave a chilling laugh, as they tried to stare her down. Cal could feel the enforcers behind him shiver, most were young rookies and had never had to deal with this sort of thing before; they had only heard the rumors till now.

Growling to himself, Cal stepped forward to hold her attentions off the rookies, "Let her go Dark Sage, it's me you want, release Crystal and I'll come quietly."

DS snarled in renewed fury and spat, "What do you take me for, a fool. I have seen you in my gazing pool..." gesturing to the overturned stone basin, "...and guess what I've seen? You think me so stupid? No, I see can see through this ruse and will not fall for it. If I can't have you as you are then you will not have what you desire either. "She said letting out a shrieking cackle as she made the symbol signs to open a gateway. "You will regret forever vexing me, Calvin Briggs, as the life you sought to save will now suffer for eternity!"

With that she finished and cast out the spell, but not for herself, it reached out for Crystal to Calvin's horror. In the blink of an eye, Crystal was whisked from sight to gods knew where. Done, DS cast another quick spell opening a portal and vanishing through it before anyone could act to stop her.

Calvin stood frozen, staring with shock at the empty space his friend had occupied only seconds ago. He could still hear her last scream as she was shunted away to wherever it was that Dark Sage had sent her. Suddenly, he dropped to his knees and began to sob. He didn't have the power or skill to find her much less be able to bring her back. None had ever returned when Dark Sage banished them.

As he shuddered with sobs, a warm beak pressed his cheek. He shuddered and looked up into the amber eyes of Crystal's familiar. Thinking he would see pain or sadness there, he was surprised to see a look of amusement in the dragon's eyes.

"Ryu, what in the world? Crystal's gone and you're still smiling." He frowned not understanding the creature's response to what had happened. Familiars are closely bonded to their masters as such Ryu should have been suffering, but he seemed only moderately concerned by the turn of events.

Finally the little dragon took pity on him and spoke, which thankfully Cal was capable of understanding. She is not dead Cal, only lost. We must find her, I can still feel her but we must hurry before the trail grows cold, it rumbled, the scaly beast knew far better than he the physical well being of its mistress.

With a sob of relief, Cal laughed and hugged the little beast. So now the question was how to find someone cast through time and space. This was not going to be easy, but then again stranger things had happened in Megakat City and as deputy mayor he did have authority to institute an all out search.

Megakat City, different reality...

Crystal was just becoming aware of the fact that she wasn't dead, the sudden thump and pain when her body hit the concrete was a pretty good indicator. The other thing she noticed, it was night out.

"Gods just how 'lucky' could one kat be?" She grumped aloud to herself.

Not knowing where she was, but assuming Dark Sage had expected her to die from that fall; she began to drag herself toward the sounds of life and light just in front of her. If she could find help and get to Cal then nothing else would matter. She would deal with the loss of her secrets as well as the misery threatening to overcome her, later. A healer was what she desperately needed now.


	2. Chapter 2

BY SHEER CHANCE

BY SHEER CHANCE

Chapter 2 – Not in Kansas Anymore

_Megakat City present day……_

Lt. Felina Feral's day had been a very long and miserable one. Not only did the Metallikats manage to make a nuisance of themselves but they also destroyed her new prototype jet with the new prototype laser they stole from the Pumadyne Research Facility.

Dang it! She really liked that jet too and was just getting comfortable in its nice plush seat. Of course, the mayor was having a fit about the costs of rebuilding but, thank god for Ms. Briggs, she would make him see things their way for once. Today, Felina was definitely glad when shift ended and she could just go home and relax.

Her poor uncle though was still hard at work in his office, plowing through paper work that idiot Steele had completely botched up. That fool would never be a proper commander, he was just too dense to get the ghost of what it meant. It would take a miracle for him to finally shape up.

Sighing she made for her vehicle, thankful that at least one thing today had gone right. She had parked in the lot across from headquarters rather than in the parking garage, which was presently jammed with cars trying to leave.

As she came up along side her hummer, a gift from her uncle, she could have sworn she heard something in the alley behind her. Years of enforcer training told her never to ignore anything odd, especially since Megakat City was notorious for all kinds of strange happenings.

With weapon in paw Felina slowly made her way down the alley following the muffled sound, that seemed to be getting closer. What she saw made her gasp with surprise.

Coming out of the shadows of the alley, half crawling on the ground toward her was a SWAT Kat. He was badly beaten and bleeding, the face mask which kept their identity secret was slashed badly but not completely.

Felina was shaken at the sight, moving closer, she nervously glanced around. 'Who could have done this and where were they?' She asked herself worriedly. Not seeing anyone in the empty alley, she reached down gently and placed a paw on the Kat's back. "Hey, are you ok? Where's your partner, I thought you guys were never separated?" She asked anxiously.

The reaction was not what she had anticipated and it shocked her as the kat half sobbed out in deep muffled tones about death and destruction.

This only served to confuse the lieutenant as she knew nothing about any fight that might have occurred tonight. Knowing she had to get him medical aid quickly, she cautiously helped the distraught kat to his feet and half dragged the larger kat down the alley and back to enforcer headquarters.

When she reached the open end of the parking lot some of the other officers caught sight of her and came to aid in carrying the injured vigilante. Cringing they all knew what would happen when the commander caught wind that a SWAT Kat had shown up on their doorstep in such a condition.

Groaning inwardly, Felina preceded the med team that showed up to take the injured feline up to the emergency floor. Once there, she insisted that the corridor be cordoned off to prevent any possible hostile reaction from other enforcers about the vigilante being there. That done, she turned her attention to who she should contact first.

Finally, she decided to contact Callie Briggs first. The deputy mayor was a well known SWAT Kats defender and would be needed should her uncle decide to take matters into his own paws and finish unmasking the SWAT Kat in question.

She knew he'd be furious with her but she couldn't in good conscious let anything bad happen to the burly tabby. She'd never forgive herself if she didn't make the call.

Sighing, she dialed the deputy mayor's office and hoped Callie would still be there at this hour. To her relief Callie picked up on the second ring.

"Mayor's office, Deputy Mayor Callie Briggs speaking," came the automatic reply.

Feline smiled to herself 'thank heaven' she briefly thought, outwardly she said "Hello, Ms Briggs, this a Lieutenant Feral calling. I have some rather disturbing news and knew you would want to be contacted immediately."

With that Felina launched into and explanation of what she had found and where she was now. As she had guessed, Callie was extremely anxious about the kat in question.

"Is he alright? When did he go into surgery? Does your uncle know about this yet?" Callie shot out a volley of questions, her anguished horror plain in her voice.

"Woah there Ms Briggs, slow down. As for whether he's alright, I assume so as he could still walk and talk, though he's been beaten badly enough to require surgery where he went just a little while ago and, no, my uncle doesn't know yet. I called you first. I know I will be hearing about this from my uncle really soon since word spreads fast in this place. He should be bursting in here any minute now so I suggest you get over here ASAP." Felina said urgently.

"Dually noted, lieutenant, I will be there as soon as I can. Do what you can to forestall your uncle from unmasking T-Bone. And, Felina, thanks for this. You don't know how much it means to me." Callie said softly as she hung up. She quickly locked her desk, picked up her purse and raced for the elevator.

Getting into her car, she was soon speeding her way toward Enforcer Headquarters. Her thoughts were in turmoil. 'How could this have happened? And where is Razor?' She wondered anxiously. Frowning, she searched her purse with one paw and dug out the special communicator the guys had given her. Pressing the button on the triangular device she was immediately rewarded with a familiar voice. She sighed in relief.

"Yes, Ms Briggs, what can we do for you?" Razor's chipper voice asked.

Callie blinked a moment in surprise. Razor didn't sound upset. If his partner was as injured as Felina had said, no way would the smaller of the SWAT Kats sound so unconcerned.

"Razor where is T-Bone?" She asked in puzzled confusion.

Now it was Jake's turn to frown at the rather strained voice of the Deputy Mayor. "He's right here with me, Ms Briggs, why do you ask?" He questioned, turning to cock an eyebrow at his partner.

Chance got up from the work bench and joined him wondering what was going on. Coming over to lean an ear against the phone, the large tabby was curious as to what had confused his partner

Even more confused was Callie on the other end. "But..." She spluttered, "...if T-Bone is there, then who did the lieutenant just med-evac to the emergency unit at Enforcer Headquarters?"

"What!?" Came the twin shocked reply of the listening toms.

"Yes, Lieutenant Feral just called me to say that T-Bone had been found brutally beaten and had to be rushed to emergency for surgery." Callie told them, then paused in stunned realization, "But if he's there with you then..."

"...who's in surgery?" Both toms finished her thought.

Looking at each other Jake and Chance silently agreed they'd better go find out what was going on. "Look, Ms. Briggs we'd better go find out what's going on. Thank you for calling and letting us know." Jake said about to cut the connection.

"Wait! I'm already on my way there. If you don't want Feral kicking your tails, you better let me run interference. I'll be watching for you. Get here quick." Callie told him then hung up before he could.

Jake hung up his phone. "Well, you heard her. We'd better get going and find out just what the heck is going on."

They headed for the secret hanger and hoped they could arrive fast enough to find out what was going on before Feral did anything they might all regret.

_In the enforcer's emergency medical unit..._

Crystal was just coming back from the brink of unconsciousness when she realized she was no longer alone nor for that matter outside.

Frowning she remembered vaguely that someone had found her and obviously that kat had brought her to the infirmary. Keeping her eyes shut for the time being, Crystal sighed and relaxed a little 'At least I can get the meds I need to aid in my healing.' She mused.

Suddenly a very loud voice was heard coming from somewhere in the corridor. She tensed in concern. Groaning, she wondered 'What in the world! Don't they know this is a med ward?'

As she lay there frowning, the sound of voices grew louder, it seemed that whoever was making the racket was headed her way. It wasn't long before she could discern not one but two voices, each seemed to be trying to over ride the other.

One was obviously male, the other female. The more she listened, the more she came to realize that the subject the two were arguing about was herself.

Still frowning, Crystal tried to wrack her brain as to why anyone would be having such a heated argument over her. More than slightly puzzled, she strained her ears and listened in, trying to get an inkling of what was going on.

She was suddenly jolted out of her musings when the pair in question slammed into her room. She thought it best to pretend she was still unconscious. Cracking an eyelid she could just make out a pawful of figures standing on the other side of the curtain.

One was a tall, dominating figure, the male she had heard. Another was a smaller, yet no less aggressive female. Another female tall and lean stood next to the male quietly while another very agitated male seemed to have followed them all into the room. The agitated male, it seemed, was the doctor who was pleading with the large male to keep his voice down and not disturb the other patient on the floor.

This seemed to only infuriate the larger male more, as he began shouting something about 'lawless vigilantes'.

Crystal had no clue what he was talking about, but it was obvious that they were heading in her direction. Finally the aggressive female seemed to put her foot down, just as the large male had been reaching for the curtain.

"That is far enough Commander, as I have been trying to tell you, you cannot under any circumstances go near that SWAT Kat." Callie stated firmly.

Feral growled, "Now listen here Deputy Mayor, it is well known that you have a soft spot for these vigilantes but now this one is in my building and under my supervision. I will do as I see fit to handle the situation, thank you."

Crystal froze, but kept her eyes closed. 'What?? NO, NO, NO' Her mind gibbered in shock. 'If this was the commander and deputy mayor then where the heck am I and who the heck did they think I was?'

Her people were aware other dimensions existed and the possibilities were endless on how people she knew might turn out on other worlds. However, knowing something and actually experiencing were two completely different things. It was just her luck to end up on a world with SWAT Kats too. 'Doubt Dark Sage could have ever have planned that.' She thought in dazed confusion.

A sudden noise brought her out of her confusion; it seemed the deputy mayor had tried to physically stop the commander from opening the curtain.

The resulting mLlée broke up when the two were forcefully separated by the other female.

Callie clenched her fists in aggravation. This was a disaster of major proportions if Feral ever managed to unmask the Kat on the bed. 'Oh how I would love to give Feral a swift kick in the tail at times for his damn posturing.' Callie thought angrily. Shaking that happy thought from her mind she focused on the problem at hand. Namely keeping Feral occupied until the real SWAT Kats could get there.

As Callie was berating the commander mentally, he had been trying to find a way around her little loophole, as she had put it.

It seemed there was a loophole in the justice system that stated: if a kat was unable to verbally defend it's reputation then no one was allowed to touch said kat. And, in this case, unmasking the SWAT Kat would cause serious harm to the Kat's reputation.

At his wits end, Feral finally snapped out at the deputy mayor. "So tell me, Ms Briggs," He spit out her name coldly," What would you have me do, wait until T-Bone wakes up and politely ask him to remove his mask and suit so we can have a look?"

Snorting in surprise, Crystal couldn't help blurting out, "T-Bone?? Who the heck is T-Bone? Sounds more like a blue plate special then a name."

In the ringing silence she couldn't help but chuckle.

Feral hit the curtain before Callie could stop him. Now that the kat was awake the loophole no longer applied, though what the Kat had said somewhat unsettled him.

Crystal had felt the motion before the commander had finished it and rolled herself off the side of the gurney she had been laying on. She had a moment to realize most of her smaller wounds had sealed over and her strength was returning. Fishing in her boot, she pulled out a spare mask and switched it for the torn one.

Feral froze as he saw the kat roll quickly out of sight on the other side of the bed.

As he began to round the gurney, the Kat in question stood and faced him.

He could definately see how there had been a confusion, especially with it being dark and the Kat being covered in soo much blood.

This was a large tabby alright but it most certainly wasn't a tom. Oh no, it was quite obviously female.

She laughed at the look of blatant confusion on the large tom's face. He obviously had not expected this in the least.

"What's the matter, Commander" She drawled sarcastically, emphasizing his title and crossing her arms over her chest. "Am I not what you were expecting?" She challenged.

Feral growled, this definitely was not T-Bone but this she kat, looked and sounded enough like the annoying tabby to be his twin, right down to that infuriatingly cocky grin.

Shaking his head, Feral didn't allow the strangeness of the situation to sway him. He would question this female and find out what she was doing here injured the way she'd been and why she was dressed like a SWAT Kat.

_Meanwhile out on the enforcer landing strip……_..

T-Bone landed the Turbokat quickly. Popping the hatch and jumping down then securing the jet, the pair tore off into a run, glad it was night shift and the flight line was lightly manned. They didn't want to get into a fight with the enforcers. Lightly knocking out the guard on duty, they slipped into the building and headed for the emergency floor by the stairs. The two hoped they weren't too late to stop Feral from ruining the life of some Kat who had the misfortune of resembling the large tabby.


	3. Chapter 3

BY SHEER CHANCE

Chapter 3 – First Meetings

Author's note – if this story starts to go all marysue, don't be alarmed. It is all part of my nefarious plot for the ending. MUAHAHAHAHAA cough choke gasp Ok, pant note to self no more maniacal laughter. grumbles and shuffles off for a glass of water

Megakat City...Enforcer's Headquarters late that night...

T-Bone and Razor sprinted down the stairs and was grateful no one saw them. They reached the appropriate floor and halted. Razor opened the door a crack and peered through. No one was in the corridor at the moment.

Counting their blessings that it was a skeleton crew this late at night, they searched for the right room number on silent feet.

Half panting the pair came to a halt outside one of the exam rooms nearly knocking over the doctor who had given up any hope of getting a word in edgewise and was leaving. He blinked at them in surprise but shook his head and said nothing as he stormed off.

Through the slightly open door they could hear voices, two of them obviously Feral and Ms. Briggs. The pair pushed the door open the rest of the way carefully and looked inside. They froze in shock at the sight before them.

Standing with his back to them was Feral...Felina was to right of him while Ms. Briggs was a short distance away to the left of him ...before them was a rather large tabby she-kat, standing with her arms crossed over her chest and facing them, that looked for all the world like a female version of T-Bone.

The two toms could only gape. 'Who was she and where had she come from?' Were the primary questions racing through their minds as they stood watching this newcomer.

Feral was already asking those very questions after having regained some of his composure from his shock at the unusual appearance of this female.

"Who are you and why are you dressed like one of those damn SWAT Kats?" He demanded.

Crystal cocked an eyebrow at the commander in wonderment. 'What's his problem? Sounds like he doesn't much care for the SWAT Kats. Still he's at least told me there are SWAT Kats in this dimension." She said thoughtfully to herself. Snorting she decided to answer his questions.

"If you must know, I'm called Crystal and that's all of a name you're getting from me. I'm curious, though, what's got your fur bristled about the SWAT Kats? The way you talk it sounds like you hate them." She asked, curious.

Feral narrowed his eyes at her. He hadn't really hadn't expected to get much from this female, but as she was in his building, she wouldn't be going anywhere till he was satisfied with her answers.

"Now listen you," he snapped, "The SWAT Kats are a nuisance this city doesn't need and having katizens going around dressing up like them is not a joke. You obviously were mistaken for one of them because of the condition you were found in by my enforcers. So I don't know why you are insisting on defending them by not telling me what is going on."

Crystal smirked, the Commander had no idea. Perhaps it was time to enlighten them all about what reality really was or in their case wasn't.

Chuckling softly Crystal leaned closer to the Commander and asked, "Commander Feral, was it?" A broad smirk on her face.

Feral stiffened. He really didn't like her tone but answered civilly anyway, in the hopes for more information. "Yes, you're correct." He growled.

Smiling even more broadly Crystal leaned back and glanced at the Commander's other companions in the room. Evidently the blond she-kat, whom they had called the Deputy Mayor, was no fan of what the Chief Enforcer was up to, if the glare she was giving him was any indication. Turning her eyes to the other side of Feral, she studied the dark haired one, who wore an enforcer's uniform. Her expression was more curious than annoyed. Returning her attention to the front once more, she hadn't missed the pair standing in the door behind the group before her. These must be this world's SWAT Kats.

Nodding to herself, she continued. "Well Commander, as you can see, I am obviously not who you thought I was. As for who I am...I think that perhaps you should all take a seat."

Feral growled again, intending to tell this she-kat he didn't need to take a seat when suddenly he was sitting...not in one of those hard plastic chairs from the waiting room...oh no, it was his own comfortable recliner from his apartment no less.

Crystal couldn't repress a chuckle as the Commander sucked in a breath and jumped from the seat as if it had burned him.

Spluttering Feral gaped at the strange she-kat, his thoughts in turmoil. 'Oh no, not another one! Why did it have to involve magic.' He groaned mentally.

Her trick had certainly gotten their attention; it also had the unfortunate effect of putting them on guard.

Frowning at that response, the female SWAT Kat couldn't help but wonder what went on in this world that these kats seemed to actually fear magic. They seemed genuinely surprised by her use of it and that was more than a little disturbing to her. If this was the norm then that probably meant the kats here did not possess or use magic as her people did. That was a very upsetting probability, at least as far as Crystal was concerned.

Sighing she thought to herself. 'Maybe I better drop the attitude and give them the straight skinny. Don't need them freaking out and taking a panicked pot shot at me.'

"Sorry Commander, I didn't mean to upset you that badly. I'm going to sit on the bed and I would like you to take your seat again ..." she gestured and several chairs like Feral's appeared, "and if the rest of you would do so as well." She requested as she stepped back and sat on the bed. "Now that the seating arrangement is taken care of, lets see if I can answer some of your questions. Hmm?"

Gingerly reseating himself, Feral glanced around at the others in the room. It was then he noticed, much to his annoyance, that the SWAT Kats had joined them at some point. He scowled at them but said nothing. Everyone took their seats cautiously.

Though Callie had held her tongue all this time, she was quietly delighted that the Swat Kats had made it in time. Clearing her throat she took up the first line of questions before Feral could say something nasty about their presence.

"So, um, Crystal...did you say your name was?" She asked and received a nod back. "Just how is it that you are able to do this and where do you come from? If you don't mind me asking." The Deputy Mayor asked politely leaning forward for a better view of the cream colored tabby before her.

Crystal smiled, 'She sounds almost like Cal.' She thought wistfully.

"Well, Ms. Briggs, if you hadn't figured it out yet, I'm not from your world. It seems, I kinda fell into your dimension by way of a magical vortex. Seems the nasty omega from my world, Dark Sage, had intended to send me somewhere horrible but I landed here instead. I'm certainly not going to complain about that. But if it's all the same to you guys, I would really like to get back home...if that's even possible." She explained.

The room was silent, as everyone just gaped at Crystal. She sighed, again. This was gonna take a while.

"Ok, here's the deal. For each world that exists there are hundreds, possibly thousands of alternate realities. Everything that could, should, or would have been does exist somewhere. If not on one world then on its twin elsewhere, or else when. It's all a matter of variables. Each world exists in its own dimension with infinite number of different possibilities on separate planes of existence just beyond the fabric of reality of that world." She tried to explain to them.

When all she got was blank looks, she asked, "Is any of this making sense to you?"

"Um, actually yeah." It was Razor who had spoken.

Crystal turned left to face the SWAT Kat. He bore a striking resemblance to Jade. She swallowed hard at that revelation.

"So you get what I'm saying then?" She asked again just to clarify.

"Yeah, actually T-Bone and I both know a little about dimensional travel, though it wasn't the most pleasant experience for us either." Razor said rubbing a paw over the back of his head.

T-Bone commented by groaning at the memory of the time their dimensional radar threw them into an alternate reality. Not one of their happiest memories.

"So you've been to another reality" Crystal mused.

The two toms nodded.

The information had an interesting effect on the others in the room. Callie and Felina sucked in a gasp of shock.

Callie spluttered. "You mean you've really seen another world? Why didn't you tell anyone?"

Just as exasperated, Felina blurts out, "So this is all really real. . . all of it and you already knew?"

Feral snorted in disbelief. "This is ridiculous! I can't believe that both of you are buying into this garbage."

"Hrmph, alright you doubting tom. What do you think is going on then?" Crystal spat out.

"I think you're all up to something that's what! I haven't figured out what it is but, you obviously are. The SWAT Kats are usually up to no good and since you're trying to emulate them, so are you." Feral sneered.

Crystal cocked an eyebrow, and then turned to her counterparts. They just shrugged. Apparently this was normal behavior for the Commander.

Razor sighs. "Yes, we have seen another dimension, Ms. Briggs. No, Lieutenant, we didn't know this sort of thing could happen on its own. As for why we didn't tell someone. Who would we tell? Seriously we don't have anyone we report to or keep record of our weird encounters. So who would we tell anything about this sort of thing to."

Groaning mentally, Crystal eyed the male SWAT Kats. "Ok guys, what happened when you got dumped on another world?" She asked.

Looking at each other for a moment, Razor finally decided to be the one to speak. "Well, we were testing out a new dimensional radar. It was a very stormy night and we encountered Feral and taunted him a bit about not shaving because we could see him clearly on the new radar. . ."

T-Bone cracked a cocky smile at this. Feral growled at him

Razor coughed to get their attention back on him then continued. "Uh, anyway, it was working perfectly. Even though the night was pitch dark and storming, we could make out everything as if it were daylight. Unfortunately, that's when everything went to hell. We were hit by a mega lightning bolt. All the systems fizzed and sparked and we temporarily lost control. When everything evened out, we didn't realize anything was wrong till we saw Feral suddenly in our flight path, we barely missed him then he began to shoot at us. We were shocked but it wasn't until the Lieutenant appeared in a jet and began to shoot at us as well, that we realized something was wrong."

Crystal rubbed her chin in thought. "Ended up in one of those worlds where the SWAT Kats were bad kats, huh?" She asked knowingly.

"Yeah, how did you know?" Razor asked, jumping forward eagerly in his seat.

"Yeah, no one knows about the stuff we've gone through, so how did you know. . ." T-Bone started, then realized. "You really are from a parallel world, aren't you?"

Crystal couldn't help it. She sniggered. "Yeah, now you've got it. On my world, I'm a fourth generation SWAT Kat and all the SWATs have been female, starting all the way back with my great-grandmother. It's kinda cool actually. We were on good terms with the Commander there."

Her smile faded. Dropping her head she continued. "However, now there won't be anymore SWAT Kats on my world. Jade and I were the last. Soo many died tonight, Jade, the Commander, the Lieutenant and no telling how many others, because of that psycho she-kat Dark Sage." She choked, gritting her teeth to hold back her pain but tears seeped down her cheeks. She didn't want to feel this...not yet...it was too fresh but her efforts were in vain and within moments she was sobbing softly, burying her face in her paws.

The sudden feeling of an arm around her shoulders startled her. She glanced up to find the warm eyes of the Deputy Mayor offering her comfort.


	4. Chapter 4

BY SHEER CHANCE

Chapter 4 – New Beginnings

_(Authors note – Ok this isn't gonna be as 'mary-sue' as I had first thought. Though it is gonna at least be partially so, as to keep with the story I have in mind. You'll just have to trust me, 'K. And NO, I have not forgotten about my stories but have been suffering from writer's block and personal emergencies. So please be patient with me and give me a bit more time to work. Thanks so much for your reviews and continued interest.)_

_(A big thank you to Ulyferal for being my beta otherwise my work would probably suck)_

_Megakat City Other Reality… Enforcer __Headquarters__ late that night……_

Callie couldn't help it, this she-kat had obviously been through a terrible ordeal and she felt truly sorry for her. Smiling sadly, she gently squeezed Crystal's shoulder. "It will be ok. I know it will be hard at first to accept but the pain of loss will get easier as time goes on."

Crystal nodded mutely, tears still cascading down her face.

"We're sorry for your loss." Felina chimed in softly, coming to stand near Callie as the deputy mayor continued to hold the female SWAT Kat in a tight hug.

"Perhaps it's time for everyone to go home and get a good night's sleep. If you desire it, I'm sure we can come up with some kind of temporary arrangement for you while you're stuck on our world, Crystal." Callie murmured.

The female SWAT Kat glanced up at Callie. "I....that's nice of you and I would appreciate it. Obviously, I don't know anyone here nor have any idea where to go. Your world is a bit different from mine." She said ruefully. "And, no offense, but I doubt the good Commander will just leave me be if I stay here at his headquarters."

Feral just snorted.

Callie gave him a warning glare and would have given him a scathing comment but was cut off by an unexpected male voice.

"Excuse me." Razor said carefully, "Uh, I have a suggestion. If Crystal doesn't object to the mess made by two bachelors, she could stay with us. After all, she is a vigilante like us."

"Wha.....?" T-Bone blurted, gaping at his partner in shock. He leaned closer to his friend and hissed, "Are you nuts? Why should we take her in? She could be a bad Kat just like those others we met?"

Razor sighed and whispered back. "She's got no where else to go, buddy. Besides, if she is a bad Kat who do you think will end up having to deal with her anyway? Come on T-Bone, we can't just leave her here with Feral."

T-Bone sighed and relented, though he had plenty of reservations about this being a bad idea. "Fine! But if she is a bad Kat then you have to deal with her."

"Agreed!" Razor hissed back then turned to Crystal and smiled warmly. "You can stay with us if you want to. We'll figure something out." T-Bone gave her a nod of acceptance.

Of course, someone else thought this was a terrible idea and he voiced his objection rather loudly. "Now wait a minute you two! I don't need another SWAT Kat running lose in this city....let alone one capable of magic......."

Callie jumped in, cutting him off, firmly. "She hasn't broken any laws here, Commander, so you have no right to hold her or even question her unless she is willing."

"She's right, Uncle. Besides, how are we supposed to contain someone who can do what she can? At least she hasn't proved herself to be a bad Kat." Felina quickly added her two cents.

Feral felt outnumbered and wasn't happy to admit both she Kats were right. Scowling, he got up from his chair. The rest followed suit. Crystal gestured and the chairs vanished. That simple gesture made Feral feel even queasier inside.

"Very well! Keep out of trouble and that magic under firm control or I will find a way to arrest you and put you in the cell we have for the Pastmaster. That should hold you. For now, I'm assuming these miscreants are going to help you get home?" He asked turning to the pair, giving them a questioning glance.

"Well, we'll certainly try." Razor said with a shrug.

"At least she'll be safer with us." T-Bone said firmly.

Snorting at that comment, Feral stepped out of the way and allowed the three to leave the room.

Callie gave them a warm smile as did Felina from behind her uncle's back.

Crystal sighed mentally in relief and followed the pair down the hall to the stairwell. Without speaking, the three hurried down the stairs for the flight line. Opening the door at the flight line level, T-Bone waited until the guard had past their spot then led the way quickly across the deck to where they had parked the Turbokat.

Razor signaled the security off and the canopy open. They leaped up into the cockpit with Crystal sitting snugly in a jump seat beside Razor.

In moments, T-Bone had the jet airborne and heading back to their secret hangar.

Crystal stared out the canopy window to watch the huge city pass below them as she tried to gather her thoughts.

'I can't believe how much like home this place looks.' She mused. It felt strange to be a passenger as she was usually the one doing the flying. That thought brought fresh tears as the memories of how this day had started washed over her.

_Back in Crystal's Dimension…_

Cal had spent the better part of the night after the disaster organizing a team of mystics to scry for Crystal's whereabouts.

The Mayor had readily agreed to come to the aid of the city's most beloved crime fighters. There had been no argument on that at least. As for how to do it, that was another matter.

Every mage and sorcerer had turned up wanting to help. Though greatly appreciated, their outpouring only added to the confusion and chaos that surrounded City Hall.

The clean up from the disaster earlier had already been dealt with by enchanter ground crews. Now all that was left was to find Crystal before the magical vapor trail faded too much to locate her.

Ryu alone didn't seem too phased by the goings on as he sat with his head on his scaly front paws waiting patiently for the time to go retrieve his mistress. This alone gave Cal the courage to continue on with the search and not give up hope. He would just have to follow the little dragon's example and be patient.


	5. Chapter 5

**BY SHEER CHANCE  
**  
Chapter 5: Life Goes On

_**Author's Note: A big thank you to Ulyferal for being my beta otherwise my work would probably suck.**_**_ Also sorry about the long wait between chapters, I've been run a bit crazy. Hopefully it won't take as long for the next one. Enjoy!_**

__

**Megakat City Other Reality…  
**  
The flight from Enforcer Headquarters to the salvage yard wasn't long and soon the Turbokat was making its landing in the underground hanger. As soon as the canopy had opened the trio jumped down to the floor. Not thinking the two toms made for their lockers to change but just as they began to unzip their flight suits, a sudden cough made them turn back around blushing.

"Crud, sorry about that Crystal, we weren't thinking," a very flustered tabby sputtered.

"Yeah, we just aren't used to having anyone else around. It was just a force of habit to go change, momentarily forgetting your presence, sorry," Razor choked out an embarrassed apology.

"Its ok guys, Jade and I were like that too. It was just the two of us at the base, so we never worried about anyone seeing us," Crystal laughed at the two very red-faced toms.

"Oh, and my name is Selina Corbell or Sely for short," she said warmly, smiling to ease them both as she took off her mask and held out a paw to shake.

Giving each other a meaningful look, the guys in unison removed their masks as well and offered a paw.

"Jake Clawson, pleasure to meet you. Also my second persona is called Razor, just so you know," the cinnamon tom offered, smiling as he shook her paw.

"Chance Furlong aka T-Bone, but I gotta say this feels really weird," the large tabby said with a shake of his head also receiving a paw shake.

"Yeah, I know how you feel Chance, kinda like looking in a gender reversed mirror, huh?" Sely said with a knowing smirk.

"Huh, you got that right. It's gonna take a while to get used to this," Chance agreed, smiling.

"Ok, then how about we go upstairs and get more comfortable and eat something? I really wanna hear more about this alternate world of yours," Jake suggested, grinning.

"I love to," she said, grinning back.

Twenty minutes later, after a clothes change for the guys, a quick shower for Sely with a change of clothes supplied by her magic, and a round of milk and pizza as dinner, they sat down in the living room.

"Okay, so you're from another dimension and I guess magic is a normal thing for you guys?" Jake asked as he settled into his favorite spot on the sofa.

"Yep! It is and I guess it's not here?" She said more than asked because she'd already seen that was true.

"Well, in our past magic was common but it lost favor and science replaced it. Unfortunately for us, we've had a few bad guys who do use it and we're not very equipped to handle it. Kinda wished we'd not tossed it out completely now. However, I wouldn't be surprised if there might still be magic users around that inherited through family lines but I doubt any of them are very strong. Sorry!" Jake explained.

"Well that's just great!" She groaned unhappily. "Since I certainly can't change what I am, can you guys help me out...you know...prevent me from doing something that will scare the pants off your people here?" She asked, dismayed this was going to be an issue.

"Sure we can, but hey, don't fret about it too much. With that ability of yours, you can help us a lot with our major criminal problems which will earn the gratitude of the people, all except Feral that is," Chance suggested, excitedly.

"Yeah, and we'll do our best to find a way to get you home again. After all, this is Megakat City where anything can happen and you're with two who have pulled off the impossible more than once...knock on wood!" Jake said, grinning, tapping his knuckles against the side of the couch.

Sely couldn't help but laugh at that. "Ok, ok I guess there really isn't anything else I can do on that topic till we, either figure out a way to get me home or someone comes looking for me."

"Say what!" blurted both toms.

"Um, yeah, it's a possibility anyway...at least I'm hoping so," she said, wistfully.

"Whoa! So you're saying it's possible someone from your world could come looking for you? Do you have any idea who or when?" Jake asked, curious as well as concerned.

Scratching her neck, Sely frowned. "Well, it's entirely possible, certainly, and it would most likely be Cal or Calvin Briggs as he's called. He's our Deputy Mayor and has both the political and magical power to do it. He's also a close friend of ours. He might succeed if he receives the help from my familiar, Ryu and he's capable of such things so it is entirely possible they would find a way to rescue me. As for when...it's anyone's guess!" She said, shrugging.

"Really? Then we might not have to do this ourselves but I do have a question...who or what is Ryu exactly? I get it about this Cal guy but you got me on the other," Chance admitted, frowning.

Frowning herself, Sely glanced over at Jake and saw the same puzzled look. Sighing, she asked unhappily, "so familiars are a lost art too, huh?"

"I guess it is since we've never heard the term before. So what is it?" Jake asked.

"A familiar is an animal that has its own powers and chooses to become bonded to a magical kat, like me, and lends its aid to that kat in their work with the arcane arts. Usually they help with things like spell casting or stronger things like incantations because they help ground the caster to this plane and makes sure they don't lose their focus. Does that make sense to you?" Sely asked, staring at each tom in question.

"Uh, I guess so," Chance offered, still looking somewhat confused.

Jake, however, had less of a problem understanding, however he did want to be sure he understood correctly so asked, "hmm, so basically a familiar is to a magical kat, what a grounding cable is to a house?"

"Now you're getting it," Sely said, sighing in relief, pleased by Jake's sharp mind. "However, there is soo much more involved than that simplified explanation, but you'd really have to experience what its like being with a familiar to understand completely."

Sighing, the burly tabby-tom rubbed his eyes tiredly. Jake might be able to get by on just a couple hours of sleep but he needed more than that and that thought made him remember something they hadn't dealt with yet.

"Um Jake, I hate to interrupt but we really need to figure out where Sely's gonna sleep tonight," he interrupted a debate on magic and its uses between Jake and Sely.

Blushing slightly at the reminder, the cinnamon tom groaned, "crud, he's right. We'll have to figure out a sleeping arrangement for you. We only have the two bedrooms here upstairs. I guess I got so carried away with finding stuff out that I forgot about that. Sorry Sely."

Grinning she only shrugged. "No worries, even though we're talking about it you guys seem to forget what I can actually do. All I gotta do is make a certain motion like this..." she raised one paw and moved her fingers in a strange sign of some sort "...and viola instant addition," she finished with a smirk.

Turning around to look down the hallway to their bedrooms, they could plainly see a fourth door at the end of the hall. Blinking in amazement, the two toms turned back to stare at her, mouths hanging open. It was finally sinking in that this she-kat was very unusual and they were wondering just what they'd gotten themselves into.

Jake was the first to vault over the couch and go for the door. Like kittens at Christmas time, it didn't take Chance or Sely long to join him. Grinning like crazy, Jake turned the knob and opened it to find a fairly decent sized bedroom with walls in a deep gray-blue and a single window that looked out over the junkyard.

It was furnished with what looked like well used items, a full bed with bed clothes and pillows, a dresser with mirror and a small trunk at the foot of the bed. There was even, what seemed to be, she-kat items sticking out of both the dresser and the trunk. Slowly looking around the space they noticed another door leading off on the far wall. This time it was Chance who was the one to reach it first and open it. Inside this door was a small bathroom with tan walls that held a sink, toilet, and complete shower tub combo.

"Ok, I gotta say this is totally radical. I mean all you have to do is wiggle your fingers and stuff happens. That is truly wicked," the big tabby blurted, beginning to see the advantages of having such abilities.

Jake wasn't hiding his excitement any better as he walked around the room grinning in awe. True the room itself wasn't anything spectacular, but how it had come to be was the amazing part. Jake could plainly see all kinds of advantages to having someone who was on their side being able to do magic on this scale. The possibilities of what she could do for them was endless.

Sely couldn't help but chuckle at the pair. To her this was just everyday, mundane skills but they acted like kittens in a toy shop. The feeling was infectious though and it made her feel good that she could possibly be more help then she had initially realized. If such small things like creating lodging could get such a stir from these two, who were used to more unusual things, then no doubt her more powerful abilities could help them in a much greater way then she had imagined.

Which led her to think, if magic was unknown here, then she could help the guys defeat their omegas even if she couldn't do the same in her own world. But then again, it was possible science from this world could help her at home...wouldn't that be great? Anyway, for now she would do what she could to help them starting with explaining just what it was she did when she 'wiggled' her fingers.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6: A Home away from Home

_(A/N: A big thank you to Ulyferal for being my beta otherwise my work would probably suck) _

_(A/N: Yea i know it's been a long time since i posted anything. Sorry for that. As for this chapter don't get too comfortable with it as i'm going to be re-vamping the whole story. I re-read it when i finished this chapter and couldn't believe the blunders i had made. Idk when i'll get the re-do done. Kinda busy at the moment. Just playing it by ear. __Anyway, enjoy it the way it is for now._ ttyl Shadwatcher.)

'Thoughts' "Speaking"

_Megakat City Other Reality… _

Thoughts of going to bed were long gone in light of seeing just what Sely could do; they went back to the living room to settle in for an explanation. Chance stepped into the kitchen and snagged some cans of milk and brought them back, doling it out to the other two then took a seat in the old reclining chair. Jake and Sely flopped down on the couch.

Settled again, Sely launched into explaining the basics on how her magic worked. The different symbols and movements involved had Jake listening raptly; following along fairly easily. Though poor Chance was able to keep up while they were on the basics but he became totally confused as it got into the more technical and in depth magic. After several hours he finally gave up and began dozing instead.

Sely noticed and smiled, mildly amused. "I guess we better stop now and get some sleep. Look, dawn's nearly here...," she nodded towards the window where the sky was getting lighter.

"Yeah, you're right. Sleep would be best," Jake agreed, reluctantly. Though he was still rather leery of magic, he was excited and felt Sely's form of magic would be far more beneficial to them all while she was with them. The possibilities were endless. He stood and stretched then reached over to nudge his barely aware partner. "Come on Chance. Time to hit the sack."

"Huh! Wha...oh yeah...bed...okay...see you guys in the morning," the tabby said, his voice fuzzy and thick. Getting to his feet, he stumbled off to his bedroom yawning.

Jake chuckled then he and Sely followed after the tired tabby. Halting outside their rooms, Jake said, "I'm sorry you're stuck here, Sely, but I'm not sorry that you're with us. I feel fate has sent you to us to help us save our city and when you've done so, you'll get home." He wasn't given to making predictions but in this instance, he had a strong feeling his words rang with truth, however, he couldn't have said why. Maybe being it was around Sely and her magic was rubbing off. Who knows?

Sely blinked at him in some surprise. "Really? Don't you think that's reaching a bit?" The cinnamon tom shook his head, his warm green eyes showing how serious he was about it. Sely shook her head in wonder. "I'm no psychic so I wouldn't know, but I hope you're right. Thank you for that vote of confidence, the help and a place to stay when I needed it most."

"You're welcome. Try to get some sleep. I know it will be hard as what you left behind was truly awful. If you need me, I'm just next door," Jake said softly, opening his door.

"You're a very perceptive tom, you know that? Sort of like Calvin," Sely said smiling wistfully. "I appreciate the offer, but I think I'll be alright. Good night." Jake nodded, smiled briefly, and then disappeared into his room, shutting the door behind him.

Sighing, Sely went into her room and slowly stripped her clothing off the normal way and slipped into a pair of comfy pajamas. Flicking the light switch off, she went to the bed and slipped under the covers. She lay on her side staring out the window watching the morning's light growing brighter against the closed curtains. Her thoughts were still racing keeping her from much needed rest.

She'd been incredibly lucky...she knew that. Dropping into another dimension could have placed her in serious danger or been her death, depending. Instead, here she was safe enough to allow her injuries to finish healing and lucky to have found both shelter and protection from these two genuinely caring toms. And because they were SWAT Kats as well, they were more equipped to help her than anyone else in this reality. Perhaps Jake was right...fate might have taken a paw in sending her here rather than wherever Dark Sage had planned for her to go.

But despite all that, this wasn't her reality and she realized just how much she missed home and everyone she'd left behind. Her best friend would have loved coming here but it would have been nice if it had been voluntary and not what had happened to them ... was that really just a few hours ago? The memories, pain, and sorrow slapped her with fresh tears. She'd been able to keep all her anguish at bay with all the distractions but now in the quiet of her room, it all came crashing back down to swamp her. In the darkness of her new surroundings, she sobbed herself quietly into an exhausted slumber.

o*o

Later than he normally rose, Jake got up to start their work day. As usual, he had to roust Chance from bed, much to the tabby's grumpy displeasure, considering how little sleep they had gotten. As they settled down at the table with breakfast, only then did Sely walk into the kitchen. Both toms looked up to greet her only to be stopped by her miserable and disheveled appearance.

Sely, usually was a morning person, especially after all those years of training to be a SWAT Kat and working with the Enforcers, but this morning it had been hard to face the day after the horrible few hours she'd spent in sleep that was filled with the horror of those last moments before she was hurled into this reality. With her blond hair tousled and her usually bright blue eyes all puffy from crying, she presented a very sad sight.

"Aw Sely, nightmares keep you up?" Jake asked, solicitously.

She gave him a miserable look.

Chance got up from his seat and went to the distraught she kat's side. Wrapping an arm around her shoulders, he gently tugged her toward the table, pulled out a chair, and pushed her into the seat. "Let me get you some hot cocoa or would you prefer tea? And do you think you could eat anything?" He asked.

Sighing deeply and putting her face in her paws, she mumbled, "Tea would be nice and I'm not very hungry at the moment. Thanks anyway."

Nodding, Chance went to a nearby cabinet, drew out a box of tea then grabbed a tea kettle from a shelf and began filling it with water.

Jake reached across the table and squeezed her shoulder. "I'm sorry you had such a bad night. Wish you would have taken my offer of comfort ... at least you wouldn't have been alone and might have gotten some sleep at least."

Raising her head, Sely quirked a small sad smile toward the tom. "It's alright...really. I needed to grieve for those I've lost and though they're mostly gone I'm still recovering from my injuries. I just need some R and R is all."

"And food!" Chance said, firmly, as he set the mug of tea before her and a plate with a piece of buttered toast, a slice of bacon, and a soft boiled egg. "I know you aren't hungry but you'll only heal if you eat. How else are you gonna rebuild your strength?"

She stared at the food stupidly a moment then her stomach growled. She blushed in embarrassment. 'Guess I am hungry after all', she thought, picking up the fork he'd set next to the plate. Glancing over at the tabby who had returned to his seat to finish his own breakfast, she smiled. "You're right and thanks."

"Just remember, we're here for you. Don't hesitate to ask for our help," Chance reminded her.

That thought almost made her snicker as she remembered last night he was suspicious of her and didn't want her here. 'What a difference a few hours and a demonstration of magic could do in cementing their budding friendship.' She mused. Picking up the mug of tea, she blew on it a bit to cool it then drank deeply. 'Hmm, that helped a lot', she thought. Setting her mug down and reaching for the bacon, she flashed them a more positive smile. "Thanks guys. You don't know me well at all but you've done a great job of making me feel welcome. It means a lot. I am really starting to like you guys."

"Aww...you're welcome, Sely and we like you too," Jake said, smiling warmly and patting her hand. Chance reached over and squeezed her other shoulder in a show of solidarity before returning to finish his cereal.

As she munched her breakfast, she studied the two males more thoroughly. It was still uncanny how much she resembled Chance ...it was a bit creepy, actually but at the same time reassuring. How strange. "You know, I didn't really expect you to be so supportive of me this quickly. I am after all still a stranger to you..."

"No you're not!" Chance interrupted. "You're a SWAT Kat and we stick together." Having seen her amazing abilities and knowing she could have taken them all and done what she wanted to them but hadn't, had proven her honesty and trustworthiness to him.

"I agree! And I'll go one further ...," Jake jumped in. "We're family and we look out for one another. Oh, and just wait until you meet Mom Furlong. Everyone is a kitten to her and family once she knows you."

"Speaking from there experience Jake?" Sely asked, smirking at the image in her mind of the pair of tough toms being coddled by Chance's mom.

Chance burst out laughing. "Oh, yeah, mom always makes Jake and I feel like kittens again. It's just her way. To her everyone needs a little TLC and she's the one to give it whenever someone visits our home. Add to the fact that you already look like one of us and you'll never get out without being dubbed, at the very least, an honorary Furlong."

Jake groaned, "Don't remind me. She always insists on calling me little Jakey because all the Furlongs are about as big if not bigger than Chance. So it makes me the smallest kat in the house when we visit. Huh, guess that won't change either since you two are close to the same size."

Sely couldn't help but chuckle at that. It was soo cute and reminded her of her own mother a lot. It made her want to share something from her life with them, so she told them about her and Jess' parents and how it had only been a few years ago that they had died in a horrible accident. The perpetrators had been caught but it had truly been an unfortunate accident, and nothing more.

"Crud! That's rough; I don't know what we'll do when the parents pass. Going home is like an outlet for us to take the edge off all the bad stuff we have to put up with," Chance said thoughtfully and it was too. Considering that the Furlong family knew all about his and Jake's activities there wasn't anything they couldn't talk to them about which helped when they needed to rant and vent their frustrations at times.

Listening to Chance talk, Sely suddenly realized that Jake hadn't said anything about his own family. Turning her head, she asked, "And what about your family, Jake? Do they know what you do in your spare time?"

A melancholy look flashed in the tom's eyes making Sely realize she probably shouldn't have asked. The clues pointed to either estrangement or loss but Jake was already answering her question so she couldn't very well apologize for bringing the subject up at all.

"I lost my parents when I was very small. I'd been told they'd been killed by a hit and run driver. Apparently, there were no other family members willing to take me in so I ended up at the Megakat Home for Orphans. Chance and I met as we went to the same school together. Though we didn't become best friend until we were about eight or nine years old. Right, Chance?"

"Yeah, that's about right. It was also the first time we fought together too. Some bullies at school were picking on the smaller kittens and made the mistake of trying to pick on Jake." Chance laughed at the memory. "Even back then that wasn't a good idea. He may have been small but he was smart and tough. That was also when Mom basically adopted him into the family and he's been part of it ever since. So Mom is Mom to him too."

More comfortable now, Jake laughed too and continued the story. "Yeah ... by then Chance and I were already hanging out together but that incident just kinda sealed the deal for us. When it was over and we were all taken to the principal's office, that's when we made our pact to be best buds forever. And here we are still, years later."

Sely listened to their history with rapt attention. This was amazing and bizarre as well. Their life story sounded very much like the tales Granny Furlong used to tell the kittens about how the original SWAT Kat team met. It just seemed too weird that this reality seemed to follow her home world's history, with just a few minor variances. Like there being no magic here. In the context of what they'd said so far and what she'd already observed her own world appeared to be several years ahead of and more technologically advanced than this world was. And being a fourth generation SWAT Kat in her world made Sely realize that it was entirely possible that, not only was she in another dimension, but that she could very well be in their version of the past on top of that. She shook off her musings when she realized the duo was waiting for a response from her.

"Sorry guys, I kinda got lost in the story there. So really you've been working together since you were just kittens. That is soo cool. Jess and I were like that too but we were raised to be SWAT Kats. It was our heritage. Having been handed down from Mother to Daughter since the first of us took up the mask years ago."

"And I find that just amazing to think about! On another world, our legacy lives on in our kittens ... still keeping the SWAT Kats alive. Being descendents, things must have been far easier for you compared to us. Must have been nice not to have to hide and actually be able to work with the Enforcers rather than always running from them," Chanced mused, his head resting on an upraised palm as he studied her.

"Must be nice to work together catching the omegas, without the constant attempts by the Enforcers to catch us. Not to mention the lectures from Feral for working outside the law. It's really a pain in the tail trying to keep the city safe and also avoid the Enforcers all the time on top of it. You'd think saving their bacon all the time would get us some consideration from them...but no...just more abuse and threats to arrest us. I know a Thank You is too much to ask for but, crud!" Jake grumped, leaning back in his chair and crossing his arms in annoyance.

Sely worked hard to hide the smile that threatened to break out on her face as she listened to the two complain about their treatment by the Enforcers. 'Hmm, wonder if they realize they are their own worst enemy', she mused, thoughtfully. 'Perhaps I should enlighten them about it? I know Granny Furlong had to get over it, guess they must too.' Nodding to herself she began to mentally hatch a plan to help these two come to the same conclusions that her own great-grand fore-bearers once did. Hopefully they would accept it faster knowing that it was what had happened in the past on her world. 'Well I won't know until I tell them. Now I just have to find the right time to do it.'


End file.
